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Smart Lipo on Knees, Calves and Ankles

By SlimLegs on 08 Sep 2011

Smart Lipo on Knees, Calves and Ankles

Salutations! I'm new to the group and wanted to blog about the smart lipo procedure on my knees, calves and ankles yesterday. When I was researching online there were not too many personal experiences with lipo on this area, so I hope this will help other people considering this area. First off, I'm 5'8' and weigh 145 lbs. I've always been tall and curvy but my lower half never matched my upper half. I have (had) heavey lower legs, my ankles were 10" in circumfrence and calves were 15" in circumfrence. My knees had a rather large amount of fat on the inner knee pads, as well on top of the knee. Today is my first morning after surgery and I must say, it's not as terrible as some people say it was going to be. My knees do not bother me much, but I will say my calf muscles are extremely sore. It almost feels like I worked out hardcore with my calves and they are just very sore to walk on. I've been keeping my legs elevated to help with the swelling, as well I'm wearing my compression garments - which aren't the most comfortable things. This morning I go for my post-op visit where he'll remove the garment and take post-op pictures . I will follow-up with my recovery as the days go on and will post more pictures throughout the recovery. For now, have a great day! Slim Legs (wannabe)

Comments (72)

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tairiver 9 Sep 2011
Thanks for posting this. I too am considering having this procedure done on my ankles and have not found much in the way of personal testimonies. Hope everything is going well :-)
SlimLegs 9 Sep 2011
Everything is going ok so far. I'm more sore than I thought I would be though. If I lay too long, I get really stiff and achey, and once I get up and moving around the house, it gets easier, but the doctor said I really need to rest with my legs elevated. I will say..yesterday when they took the garment off, it killed when they had to put it back on. My skin/muscles are really sore to the touch. The doctor did say the second and third days are the worst and then it gets better from there. Still lots of swelling but I can tell my ankles already look a lot slimmer! :) I'll keep following up as the days go along.
Thanks!
Kate H. (Community Manager) 12 Sep 2011

It sounds like the legs may not be as painful as I heard the stomach was!  My friend had her thighs done and they looked really nice.  That cracks me up about the slim legs wannabe.  You are not a wannabe anymore. ;)

SlimLegs 13 Sep 2011
Haha....well they're pretty swollen so I'm not there yet, but hopefully in a couple of weeks I will be slim legs! Thank you!
SlimLegs 13 Sep 2011
Yesterday was my first day back at work, and I felt fine all day at work, but last night I was extremely tired and achy. This morning I was stiff and hurting, but as I got moving around, I started to feel a bit better. However, my legs are really swollen today. I think it's because I was on my feet a lot yesterday at work and wasn't able to keep them elevated much. So I really do recommend keeping them elevated as much as you can. I go to get my stitches out in two days so I'll post more then. :)
tairiver 13 Sep 2011
Glad to hear your recovery is going so well. Do you have much bruising? I was also wondering about arnica and massage to help the healing. Has your Dr suggested either of these?
SlimLegs 13 Sep 2011
Yes I do have a bit of bruising, but nothing major. My doctor gave me arnica tablets and bromelain to help with swelling in bruising. I take the arnica orally but I also bought some oil to rub on as well. As for a massage...my legs are tender to the touch so a massage would be painful. However, I've read that it helps. I will ask him when I go back this week how and when I can incorporate it into the healing process.
Kate H. (Community Manager) 13 Sep 2011

Yes definitely post more pictures once your stitches come out please!

lulugrrl 13 Sep 2011
Thank you so much for posting about your experience! I found the same results in that there was not much personal testimonials. I have been planning to do some type of lipo for the last 6 years and finally have decided smartlipo (local anesthesia!) for my calves/ankles. I go to my pre-op tomorrow and my procedure is 9-28. I will also post something on this site to help others as you have done. Thanks again and I wish you well with your recovery and hope you continue to post. Take care and happy recovery!
SlimLegs 13 Sep 2011
That is so great! You will have to keep us up to date on your progress! Feel free to message me anytime for any support or advice :)
lulugrrl 15 Sep 2011
Thank you SlimLegs! How is your recovery, thus far? I had my pre-op yesterday and that went very well. I am looking forward to the procedure but still nervous, etc about it; I am sure that is normal.
SlimLegs 15 Sep 2011
I had my second post op appointment today and had my stitches taken out. My legs are still really swollen, almost to the point where they look bigger than they were before! But, again, the doctor reassured me that it will go down but it does take time. The incisions look great, you can hardly tell there was one. My doctor did mention that massaging upward towards my thighs will help with some of the fluids and swelling. I'm also still pretty sore but I am getting around better. I'll keep posting as my healing progresses :)
Kate H. (Community Manager) 15 Sep 2011

Your dog is so cute!

SlimLegs 15 Sep 2011
Thank you! He's a 5 yr old dachshund named Vegas...and is a wild man!
SlimLegs 15 Sep 2011
Ok ladies...I wanted to post some one week post-op pictures since I had my stitches removed today. Keep in mind, my legs are still very swollen. Honestly, by the end of the day, my legs look just as big as they did before the surgery, but in the morning (after elevating them while sleeping) they look much thinner - I posted that pic too. You'll see my bruising too and the incision sites that are really tiny. Let me know if y'all have any questions. I'll add more pictures every week. Here's the link... http://gallery.me.com/laurensalinas
SlimLegs 15 Sep 2011
Oh and my apologies for the novice photos...I had to use my iPhone and didn't have anyone to help me. :)
lulugrrl 15 Sep 2011
Hey SlimLegs! Your legs are looking great even with the swelling! I am surprised the bruising is minimal...at least it looks that way in the picture. Thank you for sharing!

I was wondering how the oozing was for you. Gross I know but I realized that I have a big dinner party to attend 3 days after my procedure and I'm concerned with the oozing. I hope I will be ok with the sitting and standing here and there for the dinner party..it'll only be 4 - 5 hours. Thank you and wishing you more progress each day!
SlimLegs 16 Sep 2011
Thanks lulugrrl! Actually I had clear bandages over my stitches and there was minimal blood, like hardly any. But, after the removed the stitches yesterday, this morning I woke up and noticed my left leg drained/oozed a lot. It had leaked through my stockings and onto my sheets...ew! The doctor said it was normal, and actually good to help with swelling. Do you know if they are actually conducting liposuction after your smart lipo? Smart lipo is just the process of "melting" the fat with a laser - then they have to actually liposuction it out. The "liposuction" portion of it is was makes you really sore, i.e., the jabbing of the cannula. If you are having the suction portion, I would say the third day is probably going to be the worst for you as far as being sore. My doc explaining it like being sore from working out, i.e., it's always worse on the 2nd or 3rd day. I think you'll be ok with the oozing for you dinner party, you might just not be able to help with the cooking and cleaning (which could be a good thing :)
When's your op date?
lulugrrl 18 Sep 2011
Hey SlimLegs! Yes I am definitely having the liposuction along with SmartLipo. I will not actually have stitches for the incisions, this place leaves them open to heal on their own. They explained to me that it's for the draining to help with the the swelling. I have read some places do stitches and some places do not, not really sure if it's a huge factor with the healing. When you were sore did you feel like you really worked your calves out hard, I know that is what they say it's like but is that really how you felt?

I confided in my close friend who is having the dinner party and already warned her that I might be sitting a lot and moving slowly. She was sweet and said she'd have her ottoman with pillows on top ready for me to have my legs elevated :-).

My op date is 9/21! It was the 28th but they had an opening and called to offer it to me, so I scooped it up. I really want to just get this done and get onto my healing! I am going to start another forum on this topic so others will have another experience to read about, do you mind if I refer to yours as well?

Thanks again for everything and I'll share everything I go through as well. I think RealSelf is a great place for people going through similar procedures to connect and support each other.
SlimLegs 20 Sep 2011
Absolutely, feel free to share any of it ;)
Tomorrow is the big day! I'm sure you'll do wonderfully! Feel free to message me with any specific questions. As far as being sore and it feeling like I've "worked out"...what I meant by that is the pain is similar where your muscles are very tight and sore, but much more sore. If working out hurt like this, know one would work out, lol! I guess in essence, it's pain like that (all over muscle soreness), but it's much more intense and lasts longer. So sore that it hurts to touch - whereas being sore from working and getting a massage feels great. I think too that when it's your legs, it's so much harder b/c you rely on those muscles to do so much. A few days after I could barely walk on my feet flat and wouldn't bend or stretch out my knees all the way. It was like I was trying to minimize using any of my lower leg muscles. However, I will say.... this week I've felt much, much better. It got better really fast. Tomorrow I will be two weeks post-op and as of yesterday, I'm walking normal again and it hasn't really slowed me down too much anymore. At the end of the day, I'm still a little sore and achy, but it's not as bad as it was last week.
Don't worry, you'll do great tomorrow! Just get lots of R&R for the next few days. Keep in touch and let me know how it goes!
lulugrrl 20 Sep 2011
Thank you!!! I really appreciate you sharing your experience.
Ok, that is what I was thinking it might feel like, an intense all over muscle soreness. I definitely would not workout if I felt that way every time I worked out...that is for sure! :-) Sounds really painful but great to hear that it seems to be a quick turn around.
I, thankfully, have a perk which enables me to work from home whenever I need to, so I was planning to do that the next couple of weeks but I will be working Thursday after my procedure....hopefully.
Thanks, I am definitely nervous, I know I'll be fine and it'll be smooth but still nervous. I'll definitely take naps here and there throughout the week.
Thank you again SlimLegs! I really very thankful you posted your forum. :-)
lulugrrl 25 Sep 2011
Hey Slimlegs! Hope your recovery is still going well! I just posted my forum, it's waiting to be reviewed before it's available online, I'll post the link once it's live. Today is Post-op Day 4 for me and it's getting easier to move around. I do have more swelling today I think because of being so active yesterday with my dinner party I attended. But I am trying to keep things low-key today. Overall, I think I am doing really well. You are right about that all over deep muscle soreness/tightness. The day after I felt like I had done 200 toe-lifts! haha but I know it will be all worth it. How is your recovery going? Happy to be walking normal again! Hey I was wondering do you have all the feeling back in your skin? Mine is still numb feeling, which I know is expected but wondered how you were since you're a couple weeks ahead of me. Hope you had a super weekend!
tairiver 17 Sep 2011
Thanks so much again for sharing! Wow, even with swelling your legs look great! The bruising isn't that bad either! I bet your Dr is really pleased with how well they are healing! Do you exercise much? Was wondering if you have been able to do so yet or when you were advised you could?
SlimLegs 20 Sep 2011
Yes, I do try to exercise between 3-5 times a week. I've been advised that I can start exercising, however, I really don't think running would be a good idea right now. I actually went out this past Saturday night and felt good enough to do a tiny bit of dancing and the next day I really regretted it! I was really sore the next day. I think it was a little too soon for that, lol. It is kind of driving me crazy that I'm not being too active so I was thinking of starting some walking this week. I'll let you know how it goes :)
tairiver 26 Sep 2011
I hope you all had a great weekend! It is so nice that you both are able to share your experiences with each other. Must be reassuring! Slimlegs- I hope you got out walking and it wasn't too painful for you. Lulugirl- sounds like things are going really well for you too. Can I ask about your ankles? It seems like your calves are the things that are the most sore at the moment. Your ankles not so much? That surprises me since the ankles would seem to be more tricky to operate on given the area. How far down the ankle could your doctor go? Right down to the ankle joint and around the Achilles Tendon? Sorry for all the questions- am just very curious.

Thanks so much again for sharing :-)

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